Israeli Judiciary Committee Appoints 70 Judges as Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit's Appointment Is Officially Published

The Committee for the Selection of Judges in Israel has appointed approximately 70 judges to various courts including magistrate, juvenile, traffic, and family courts. This announcement coincides with the official publication of Yitzhak Amit's appointment as President of the Supreme Court in the government gazette. Since Amit's appointment, many ministers, Knesset members, and lawyers had refrained from addressing him as President.

About three weeks ago, the Supreme Court ruled on petitions compelling Justice Minister Yariv Levin to cooperate with Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit. The court's decision stated that, following its recommendation, all parties agreed, including through non-opposition by the first respondent, that Amit's appointment as Supreme Court President should be published promptly by the court administration.

Previously, the Supreme Court had ruled that Minister Levin was obligated to cooperate with Amit to enable the exercise of his powers. Levin had refused to cooperate and declared he did not recognize Amit as Supreme Court President. Justices Ofer Groskopf, Alex Stein, and Yechiel Kasher characterized Levin's actions as repeated attempts to thwart Amit's appointment and undermine its legitimacy.

The court further ruled that Levin is barred from raising claims about defects for which he is responsible due to his unlawful conduct and omissions. His behavior was found to have significantly harmed the quality of legal services to the public and the efficiency of law enforcement. A petition filed by the Zulat Institute highlighted that Levin's conduct resulted in a shortage of officials responsible for coordination between the Justice Minister and the Supreme Court President, affecting appointments of court presidents, vice presidents, associate judges, the Supreme Court registrar, and members of parole committees.